The Road to Happiness is Always Under Construction

Saturday, February 25, 2012

The title of the blog is taken from my 2010 book by the same name. The premise the book and blog is based on the pursiut of happiness with the understanding that happiness is not a permanent state of being.

Being happy is a goal for everyone but most of us have not defined what happiness is, making it difficult to have a plan for achieving happiness. Despite this, we expect to find happiness and remain there.

So, like many others I struggled with happiness.

I realized I had been happy at times but I could not understand why I could not sustain the state permamently. Then one day while reading I came across a Spanish proveb. It read, "There is no happiness, there are only moments of happiness". This hit me "like a ton of bricks"

It was a relief. Suddenly I realized I had been unrealistic in my thinking. The proveb was correct. No one could really be happy all the time. It isn't a mental state that can be achieved and sustained.

Shortly after discovering this new point of view, I began to think back to points in my life where I was happy. As I collected the episodes I had the idea for the book and it's title.

My collectiion lead me to other conclusions. The first; my happiness had almost always involved activities and not just "thinking positive'. Second; my happiness had often been related to helping others.

The book has 50 chapters. It recommends one activity per week for a year. By the end of a year the reader should be experiencing a greater degree of happiness in life. I hope you explore the book and that you will follow the blog as it extends the book.